ICC wants India to hand over al-Bashir

The International Criminal Court said India should arrest and hand over Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, who is wanted on genocide charges and expected to visit New Delhi for a summit this week.

Bashir is accused of masterminding genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in his campaign to crush a revolt in Sudan’s western Darfur region. The Hague-based tribunal issued warrants for his arrest in 2009 and 2010.

Along with at least 40 other African leaders, the 71-year-old president is expected to arrive in New Delhi on Wednesday to attend an India-Africa Summit aimed at boosting trade and investment between the two regions, Reuters reported.

Although India is not an ICC signatory, New Delhi should act as a United Nations Security Council resolution had lifted Bashir’s immunity under international law and urged all states to fully cooperate with the ICC, said the office of ICC Prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda.

“As states ponder over such matters, it is fundamentally important not to forget the victims who deserve justice for the unimaginable atrocities they have suffered,” Bensouda’s office told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by email late on Monday.

“By arresting and surrendering ICC suspects, India can contribute to the important goal of ending impunity for the world’s worst crimes.”

Indian officials were not immediately available for comment, but Foreign Ministry spokesman, Vikas Swarup, when asked the country’s position, told local media, “India is fully compliant with its international legal obligations.”

This is not the first time the ICC has asked a foreign government to arrest and hand over Bashir.